His first role in a feature film was Raus aus der Haut (1997) (TV), directed by Andreas Dresen. In the following years, he appeared in critically acclaimed projects such as Soloalbum (2003), Off Beat (2004), Das wilde Leben (2007) and Keinohrhasen.[1]Schweighöfer portrayed Lieutenant-Colonel Franz Herber in Valkyrie, a 2008 film dramatizing the failed 20 July assassination and political coup plot to kill Adolf Hitler. The international release of Valkyrie and the all-star cast (including Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh, Terence Stamp and Bill Nighy) not only allowed Schweighöfer to be recognized abroad, it provided an opportunity for him to be cast in other English speaking roles. In 2010 Schweighöfer made his debut as film director with the romantic comedy What a Man, followed in 2013 by his second movie Schlussmacher.

Between 2004 and 2012 Schweighöfer dated Ani Schromm, and they got together again in the summer of 2013. They have a daughter, Greta (born 1 May 2009) and a son, Valentin (born 17 February 2014).[6] He currently lives in Berlin.